Easy steps to keep your reunion organized
Start a year in advance by assembling your committee together.
1. Organize the People Search. It’s most productive to hold regular meetings where committee members can work together. It’s great if someone on your committee has an office where everyone can meet and search the web and make phone calls together.
Have a regular phone bank/Internet search meetings dedicated to finding people. Try various Search Engines on the Internet and follow up with phone calls. (Check out our People Search Section for a listing of Free websites.) You may have to resort to sites that charge a small fee if you have no luck on the free ones.
2. Assign specific tasks to each committee member and have a due date for each task.
Collect Seed Money: The easiest way to collect money is to ask each committee member to pay for their tickets in advance. Other ideas:
1. Arrange an early fundraiser, like a pot luck dinner and charge a small fee.
2. Provide incentives for early payment for tickets.
3. Charge a fee for advertising business cards in future reunion mailings and website.
4. Try to attract corporate sponsorship.
5. Offer t-shirts or other reunion-related items with your school logo, family crest or military emblem and order enough based on early orders and add 50% more to sell at the reunion.
Select the Venue and Date. This is very important to accomplish at least a year in advance or sooner of your reunion as event venues are booked early, especially in popular locales and summer locations. Some ideas include:
1. A restaurant/hotel near your stomping grounds
2. A country club in the vicinity of where most guests still reside
3. An outdoor park with lots of activities and picnic areas
4. A cruise ship
5. Dude Ranch
6. Theme or Adventure Park
7. Contact you local Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) for ideas
8. Casino
9. Winery
10. Church or other religious institution
11. Theatre
12. Museum
13. Historical Landmark
14. Camping Grounds
15. Resorts and Spas
16. Indian Reservation
17. National Park
18. Ski Lodge/Village
19. Rent-a-Villa or Large Mansion